MST3K 819 - Invasion of the Neptune Men
The Movie Synopsis Slow-moving aliens from the planet Neptune, wearing nosecone-shaped space helmets, attempt to invade Earth in a winged rocketship. But they are thwarted by a mysterious superhero called "Space Chief," who flies around in a rocket-propelled car. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055562/plotsummary No relation to [[Prince of Space|''Prince of Space]]. Information *Many of the invasion scenes in Tokyo were edited from World War III Breaks Out (1960). The appearance of a giant billboard of Adolf Hitler has led some viewers to believe that the stock footage is taken from documentary footage of World War II Japan. However, according to August Ragone on the special features of the DVD for the episode, only one shot of the Diet building as stock footage, and the rest all purpose-built for the Neptune Men series"August on Neptune", Ballyhoo Pictures. MST3K XXXVII. (see "Trivia" below). *One of the boys owns a toy Robbie the Robot from Forbidden Planet (1956). http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0055562/trivia The Episode Host Segments , arrives in Roman Times']] '''Prologue': Tom and Crow are disgusted to learn about eyelash mites and decide to get rid of the ones Mike has. Segment One: The Bots send the nanites to destroy the mites, scorning Mike like it was his idea when things go south. Meanwhile, The Mad Goth, AKA Bobo arrives, making Pearl and Brain Guy want to commit suicide, until Brain Guy convinces Pearl to save Bobo by telling her that Bobo ruining time and space would mean the end of Chicken in a Biskit. Segment Two: Mike confuses the bots by telling them about Noh Theater. Abbott and Costello hijinks ensue. Segment Three: Tom comes down with a bad case of Roji Panty complex. Meanwhile, Pearl and Brain Guy unsuccessfully make Bobo remember who he really is. Segment Four: Mike and the Bots are about to lose their sanity when they get a visitor - Krankor! ' visits the SOL']] Closing (Segment Five): Mike and the Bots read suggestions from the suggestion box, all insulting Japan. Meanwhile, Pearl and Brain Guy hit Bobo with a giant slate of rock, making him remember who he is, resulting in him, Pearl, and Brain Guy getting thrown into the dungeon. Stinger: "Aaaah! What's that?" Guest Stars * Roman Day Players: Beez McKeever, Patrick Brantseg, Paul Chaplin * ''Krankor'': Bill Corbett Trivia * The "Noh Theater" segment is referenced in The Grudge RiffTrax episode. * This was Jill Roozenboom’s last episode as Production Manager. It was also intern Meshach Weber’s last episode. * The production staff and cast was extremely disapproving of what appeared to be genuine WWII bombing footage being incorporated into what was essentially a sci-fi film, an attitude that was given free rein in the more-merciless-than-usual riffing. Kevin Murphy specifically cited this as one of the worst movies ever shown on the series, calling the film's director "reprehensible" for using actual WWII footage in what was basically a children's film. *This episode was ranked #95 among backers of the Bring Back MST3K Kickstarter in the Top 100 Poll. Callbacks * A lot of riffs make references to Prince of Space. Quotes & References *''"Starring Santa! Speed Racer! Shonen Knife! Sailor Moon!"'' :Speed Racer is a 60's anime series about a crime-fighting auto racer (which, despite the prominence Mike seems to be assigning it, was a modest success in its native country and is more famous as one of the first anime to be given wide release in the United States); Shonen Knife is an all-female Japanese rock band; Sailor Moon is an anime about a team of teenage heroines who wear sailor suit-like costumes which has seen a pair of revival shows since this episode aired, one live-action (Pretty Guardian Sailor Moon) and one animated (Sailor Moon Crystal). Contrary to what Crow and Mike say later in the episode, Sailor Moon isn't gun-toting or pre-pubescent. * "It's the Neptunian Bay of Pigs." :A reference to the disastrous failed attempt to invade Cuba and overthrow Fidel Castro on April 17, 1961, as shown in Coleman Francis' magnum opus, Red Zone Cuba. * "He was trained in karate by Bruce Lei...bowitz". :An implication that Space Chief's karate moves aren't quite as impressive as those of kung-fu movie legend Bruce Lee. *''"Paul is a dead man! Miss him, miss him!"'' :A reference to the bizarre conspiracy theory that emerged in the late 1960s that musician and member of The Beatles, Paul McCartney, had died and been replaced with a double. The Beatles supposedly "told" their fans this using hidden messages and backwards masking on their later albums. (This specific reference is to the message you can supposedly hear if you play the end of "I'm So Tired" from the White Album backwards.) *''"Thomas the Tank Engine was very cross with Japan and felt he must resort to carpet bombing."'' :Based on the children's TV series Thomas the Tank Engine. The Neptunians' ship resembles the titular tank engine. *''"Enjoy music from "Triumph of the Will."'' :Triumph of the Will is an infamous Nazi propaganda film from 1935. *Servo:"They took out the Hitler Building! Where's everybody gonna go to see Hitler memorabilia?" *Crow:"All the Hitler rides and games! The Hitler salt and pepper shakers..." *Mike:"That great restaurant, The Bunker, it's gone, you sons of a...!" *Crow:"What's next? The Mussolini Mall?" *Servo:"Followed by the Pinochet Petting Zoo?" '' :These are all in reference to the footage of "The Hitler Building" that was lifted from the 1960 film ''World War III Breaks Out. *''"Hey, guys, it's turning into The Magnificent Ambersons!"'' :The Magnificent Ambersons is a 1942 film by Orson Welles, starring Joseph Cotten. *''"It's been a hard day's night..."'' :Shots of the Japanese boys running down a flight of stairs inspire this reference to the Beatles' A Hard Day's Night. A similar scene appears in the group's film of the same name. *Kid - "I want to show you something really big." Mike - "It's Crystal Gayle's curling iron." :Crystal Gayle is a singer known for her extremely long hair. * "Space Chief is actually Racer X, Speed's brother!" :Another Speed Racer reference. The mysterious Racer X was indeed secretly Speed's older brother. Not so secret to the audience, as the narrator would point his true identity out in every episode (as Mike does here). Memorable Quotes : Tibana examines a sample under a microscope : Tibana: So, then—the Rogi-Pani Complex. : Mike: The "Roji-Panty Complex"? : Servo & Crow the Neptune Men: HA. HA. HA. HA. Your costume is ridiculous. : an extremely poorly staged fight scene, Space Chief goes through an elaborate display of martial arts as the Neptune Men stagger around awkwardly and tumble to the ground. : Servo: That guy just fell down, for cryin' out loud! : . . . : Crow: They're being defeated by a wispy bachelor. : . . . : Neptune Men retreat into their ship. : Crow Space Chief: Aw c'mon, I wanna jump around while you fall down more! : Neptune Men approach Earth : Mike: Shoot at Earth all you want, just get Bill Maher. : the Neptune Men demolish Tokyo : Servo the Japanese: Oh, let's call our friends the Koreans! Oh, oh no — the Russians! Well, no. The Chinese! Oh, well, I guess not. : Neptune Men endlessly strafe Tokyo : Mike: I never thought I'd say it, but suddenly Independence Day seems a richly-nuanced movie. : about 20 minutes of scenes depicting the kids running around a military base : Crow: So whatever happened to Space Chef? : Mike: That's "Chief." : Crow: Chief Chef? : Crow: Y'know, Space Chief should try going into space sometime! : Servo: Yeah, he's more like Lower-Atmosphere Chief. : Mike: Barely-Off-The-Stupid-Ground Chief. : attack on the city includes stock footage of a building with a giant picture of Hitler being blown up : Crow: confused What the...? : Servo: They took out the Hitler Building!!! Where is everyone going to see Hitler memorabilia? : Crow: All the Hitler rides and games! The Hitler salt and pepper shakers! : Mike: The great restaurant "The Bunker"! It's gone! You sons of... : Crow: They blew it up! : . . . : Crow: Say, Mike—was there a Hitler Building where you grew up? : Mike: Not, uh...no. No. : Crow: Sure? : Mike: ...Yeah. : . . . : spaceship begins to dive : Crow: What next? The Mussolini Mall? : Servo: Yeah! Followed by the Pinochet Petting Zoo! : a full 8 minutes after "Space Chief" joins the battle, the "spaceships" are still diving and firing at each other : Crow: So, d-do either of you guys know any songs about stock footage that would get us through this? : Servo: Oh, I know a song about stock footage! It goes like this: Dih-dih dih dih dih dih... thundering EAT IT, MOVIE! : Crow: Whoa! Whoa! : Servo: ranting TAKE THIS STUPID LITTLE COCKROACH OF A FILM, ROLL IT UP SOOOOO TIGHT, AND THEN RAM IT RIGHT UP YOUR— sobbing : of a radar screen, as the scientists count down : Scientist: Ten, nine, eight... : Crow: Yeah, yeah, right—one. : Scientist: Seven, six... : Crow: One! : Scientist: Five, four... : Crow: ONE!!! : Neptune Men's fighter ships strafe the children's car : Servo: Space Chief's off having a couple Sapporos with Jet Jaguar and Prince of Space. Video releases *Commercially released on DVD by Shout! Factory in November 2016 as part of Volume XXXVII, a 4-disc set along with The Human Duplicators, Escape 2000, and The Horror of Party Beach. **The DVD includes an introduction by Mary Jo Pehl, the Ballyhoo Motion Pictures feature August on Neptune, and a theatrical trailer. References Category:MST3K Episodes Category:Season 8 Category:Foreign Film Category:Unrated movies Category:Episodes directed by Michael J. Nelson Category:Movies edited for violent content Category:Superhero movies